Burton Retires; Church Elected Vice President of Chlor-Alkali and Derivatives
5 June 2000
Burton Retires; Church Elected Vice President of Chlor-Alkali and Derivatives
PITTSBURGH--June 5, 2000--Rae R. Burton, vice president, chlor-alkali and derivative chemicals, has announced that he will retire July 1 after 32 years of service to the company.David B. Church, a veteran of PPG's chemicals and coatings businesses, will succeed Burton, having been elected vice president in charge of the company's largest and oldest chemicals business unit.
"Under Rae's leadership our chlor-alkali business has earned a reputation as one of the most profitable in the industry, setting production records 12 of the past 14 years," said Frank A. Archinaco, executive vice president in charge of chemicals, fiber glass and glass. "We'll clearly miss Rae and his talents, but we're very fortunate to have someone of Dave Church's abilities. During his 35 years with PPG, Dave has held a wide variety of posts that have prepared him for this important assignment."
Burton, 58, joined PPG as a chemicals sales representative in Cincinnati in 1968 and held several sales management posts before moving to Pittsburgh in 1981 as marketing manager for chlorine, caustic soda and sodium chlorate. He was named general sales manager for industrial chemicals and then general manager, silica products, overseeing a global expansion in which PPG opened production capabilities in the Asia-Pacific region. He became chlor-alkali and derivatives marketing director in 1988, general manager of the unit in 1991, and vice president in 1993.
A native of San Antonio, Texas, Burton was a U.S. Navy officer following graduation from the University of Texas with a degree in business administration, and holds a master's degree in business administration from the University of Houston.
Church, 58, has held operations, sales, marketing and general management posts since he joined the company in 1965. He was general manager, silica products, from 1988 to 1993. In 1993 he was appointed general manager, surfactants, before the business was acquired by BASF Corp. He then was named director of commercial development for specialty chemcials before becoming general manager, packaging coatings-Americas, in 1998.
Church received a bachelor's degree in chemical engineering from Northeastern University.
PPG , with headquarters in Pittsburgh, is one of the world's largest chemicals manufacturers. In addition to chlor-alkali and derivatives, PPG's chemicals businesses include fine chemicals, silicas, optical products and calcium hypochlorite.
PPG is also a leading global supplier of coatings, continuous-strand fiber glass and flat and fabricated glass, as well as a major North American producer of architectural coatings. Sales exceeded US$7.7 billion in 1999, including chemicals sales of nearly US$1.4 billion.